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To: HG who wrote (90828)	1/12/2000 11:31:00 AM
From: H James Morris	Respond to of 164684

Happy, you were supposed to get this. >January 12, 2000 Charlotte Russe is becoming a real fashion plate in the cut-throat apparel industry. The San Diego-based company yesterday said heavy sales of chic, trendy outfits at its 107 Charlotte Russe and Rampage apparel outlets pushed up net income in the first quarter ended Dec. 25 to $4.8 million, or 22 cents a share, compared to a net income of $3.2 million, or 15 cents a share, during the same period a year earlier. Revenues during the quarter were also stylish: $62.9 million, up from $46 million. Bernard Zeichner, the company's president and chief executive officer, said the sterling numbers come at a time when Charlotte Russe is undergoing a burst of expansion, with 30 to 33 new stores to open in fiscal 2000. "Because of the growing brand awareness of the Charlotte Russe and Rampage names, our new stores have historically opened at near-mature levels, enabling us to quickly recapture our initial investment and generate approximately 90-percent return within the first year," Zeichner said, noting that 11 new shops debuted in the quarter. Analysts say the company's basic sales philosophy -- tailoring its merchandise to women 15 to 35 who typically spend much of their disposable income on clothing -- is being implemented by Zeichner and his staff with savvy. "They're running a tight ship," said Richard Jaffe of Paine Webber. "They stock their stores with up-to-the-minute, highly desirable fashions . . . Good vision and good execution equals good earnings reports." Charlotte Russe, which went public in October, operates nine stores in San Diego County, none of them under the Rampage logo. Named for a confection of cake and whipped cream, Charlotte Russe was founded in 1975 by brothers Frank, Danny and Larry Lawrence in the Plaza Camino Real shopping center in Carlsbad. The firm was acquired in 1996 by two funds managed by the private-equity firm of Saunders Karp & Magrue. Zeichner, who was then Charlotte Russe's president, concurrently purchased an ownership interest in the business from the firm. Shares of Charlotte Russe closed yesterday at $18.375, down 50 cents. The company's stock trades under the symbol CHIC on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Copyright 2000 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.